"UAE94" detainee Mohammed al-Roken detained indefinitely under the pretext of “rehabilitation needs”
Name(s):
Mohammed al-Roken
Status:
Arbitrarily detained
Year of birth:
1962
Profession:
Emirati lawyer and the former president of the Emirates Jurists Association
Nationality:
Emirati
Date of arrest:
Mohammed al-Roken is an Emirati lawyer, who was arrested on July 17, 2012, as part of the “UAE94”. He was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment. He completed his sentence in July 2022 but remains detained.
In March 2011, after a group of 133 Emirati academics, judges, lawyers, students, and human rights defenders signed a petition addressed to the President of the United Arab Emirates and the country’s Federal Supreme Council calling for democratic reforms, the UAE’s State Security Apparatus (SSA) initiated a campaign of arrests against the individuals who signed the document.
Mohammed al-Roken is a prominent Emirati human rights defender and lawyer, and the former President of the Emirates Jurists Association. He has previously urged the UAE authorities to undertake political policy and legal reforms in the country. He has advocated to halt the violation of human rights and encouraged the government to join International covenants, agreements and related protocols protecting human rights. Moreover, he provided legal assistance to victims of human rights violations in the United Arab Emirates, including to other human rights defenders.
He was arrested on July 17, 2012, as part of the “UAE94”, for signing the petition calling for democratic reform in the UAE.
Arrested individuals were later sentenced in the UAE’s largest mass trial, known as the “UAE94”, before the Federal Supreme Court.
On January 27, 2013, the 94 defendants were charged with founding, organising and administering an organisation aimed at overthrowing the government, on the basis of article 180 of the country’s Penal Code.
On July 2, 2013, the Emirati authorities convicted 61 of the 94 defendants, in addition to eight individuals in absentia. Al-Roken was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.
In 2014, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention issued Opinion 60/2013, in which it found that the detention of the 61 individuals convicted in the "UAE94" trial was arbitrary.
Al-Roken completed his sentence in July 2022, but under the pretext of “rehabilitation needs”, pursuant to the UAE’s Counter-Terrorism Law and the Munasaha Centre Law, the authorities have extended his detention indefinitely. He suffers from ongoing violations, as he continues to this day to be held arbitrarily.
In view of his continued detention, on August 18, 2022, together with the Emirates Detainees Advocacy Center, MENA Rights Group requested the intervention of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders and the Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights to urge Emirati authorities to release him unconditionally.
On September 7, 2022, MENA Rights Group and the Emirates Detainees Advocacy Center submitted case to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), asking them to issue a second Opinion as to the arbitrary nature of his detention. In our Request for Opinion, we recalled that the UAE authorities kept al-Roken detained after the completion of his sentence on the basis of laws, namely the Counter-Terrorism Law and the Munasaha Centre Law that contain imprecise and ambiguous provisions that defy the principle of legal certainty. We also pointed out that his detention in a Munasaha Centre was not the result of a court decision that respected fair trial standards. Finally, we argued that, beyond his original sentence, his placement under the Munasaha regime is directly linked to the exercise of his rights and freedoms.
| Name(s): |
Mohammed al-Roken
|
| Status: |
Arbitrarily detained
|
| Year of birth: |
1962
|
| Profession: |
Emirati lawyer and the former president of the Emirates Jurists Association
|
| Nationality: |
Emirati
|
| Date of arrest: |
|
In March 2011, after a group of 133 Emirati academics, judges, lawyers, students, and human rights defenders signed a petition addressed to the President of the United Arab Emirates and the country’s Federal Supreme Council calling for democratic reforms, the UAE’s State Security Apparatus (SSA) initiated a campaign of arrests against the individuals who signed the document.
Mohammed al-Roken is a prominent Emirati human rights defender and lawyer, and the former President of the Emirates Jurists Association. He has previously urged the UAE authorities to undertake political policy and legal reforms in the country. He has advocated to halt the violation of human rights and encouraged the government to join International covenants, agreements and related protocols protecting human rights. Moreover, he provided legal assistance to victims of human rights violations in the United Arab Emirates, including to other human rights defenders.
He was arrested on July 17, 2012, as part of the “UAE94”, for signing the petition calling for democratic reform in the UAE.
Arrested individuals were later sentenced in the UAE’s largest mass trial, known as the “UAE94”, before the Federal Supreme Court.
On January 27, 2013, the 94 defendants were charged with founding, organising and administering an organisation aimed at overthrowing the government, on the basis of article 180 of the country’s Penal Code.
On July 2, 2013, the Emirati authorities convicted 61 of the 94 defendants, in addition to eight individuals in absentia. Al-Roken was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.
In 2014, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention issued Opinion 60/2013, in which it found that the detention of the 61 individuals convicted in the "UAE94" trial was arbitrary.
Al-Roken completed his sentence in July 2022, but under the pretext of “rehabilitation needs”, pursuant to the UAE’s Counter-Terrorism Law and the Munasaha Centre Law, the authorities have extended his detention indefinitely. He suffers from ongoing violations, as he continues to this day to be held arbitrarily.
In view of his continued detention, on August 18, 2022, together with the Emirates Detainees Advocacy Center, MENA Rights Group requested the intervention of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders and the Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights to urge Emirati authorities to release him unconditionally.
On September 7, 2022, MENA Rights Group and the Emirates Detainees Advocacy Center submitted case to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), asking them to issue a second Opinion as to the arbitrary nature of his detention. In our Request for Opinion, we recalled that the UAE authorities kept al-Roken detained after the completion of his sentence on the basis of laws, namely the Counter-Terrorism Law and the Munasaha Centre Law that contain imprecise and ambiguous provisions that defy the principle of legal certainty. We also pointed out that his detention in a Munasaha Centre was not the result of a court decision that respected fair trial standards. Finally, we argued that, beyond his original sentence, his placement under the Munasaha regime is directly linked to the exercise of his rights and freedoms.
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